Jorge Martin signs with Aprilia
The next piece on the 2025 MotoGP puzzle has been confirmed, with Aprilia Racing signing Jorge Martin for the coming season and beyond. The switch to the Aprilia RS-GP, after four seasons on a Ducati Desmosedici with Pramac Racing, comes after the Spaniard’s desire to join the factory Ducati team was rebuffed.
A very brief statement issued by Aprilia Racing on 3 June confirmed that Martin will be an Aprilia rider from 2025, on a multi-year contract. The 26-year-old from Madrid entered the grand prix paddock in 2015 and won the Moto3 World Championship in 2018. Martin then spent two seasons in Moto2, before moving to MotoGP in 2021 with Pramac Racing.
A race winner in his debut MotoGP season, Martin’s best year in the premier class to date has been 2023, when he led for most of the season but ultimately finished runner-up to Ducati Lenovo Team’s Francesco Bagnaia.
Before the Aprilia announcement, Martin was considered a front runner to join Bagnaia at the factory team next year. However, when it became apparent Ducati were favouring Marc Marquez, Aprilia Racing became the better option to deliver Martin’s wish to ride for a factory team. While Marquez’s move to the factory Ducati team from Gresini Racing had been rumoured for some time, it wasn’t announced until after Martin had signed with Aprilia.
“A path of unstoppable growth, Jorge is a building block to reach the goal we are all looking for with great hunger at Aprilia Racing,” said CEO, Massimo Rivola. “Thanks to Dr. Michele Colaninno for this opportunity, we spoke and without wasting any time, we made the decision (to sign Martin).”
Aleix Espargaro, a close friend and mentor to Martin, is thought to have been pivotal in convincing him to come across to Aprilia. Espargaro is retiring from MotoGP at the end of this season, so Martin will essentially take his seat at Aprilia Racing.
At time of writing, Martin was leading this year’s MotoGP World Championship by 18 points, with two feature race wins and three sprint wins in the first seven rounds.